Beneath the Stars
by Pearlinprocess
Summary: Pepito protected Todd from a fate worse than death, but he cannot protect him from his own Destiny. On the eve of manhood, Todd goes out to seek it for himself. Will he find the fortune he's hoping for, or horror and tragedy? Only time will tell. Invader Zim crossover. Main pairings are Todd/Gaz, Todd/Johnny, with a few others implied. See inside for full summary.
1. Betrayals

(( Author's notes, PLEASE READ: Hey again FFN! I wrote a version of this story a few years ago but decided to take it down. Unfortunately pretty much right after I did that my computer crashed unexpectedly. DX So I lost a TON of work on this story and I wasn't sure if I was gonna rewrite it for a pretty long time. I just found a small portion of the story I had randomly saved elsewhere, and the plot came back to me, so I decided to try rewriting at least the first chapter or two. But it IS a complete rewrite from a shoddy memory, so it WILL be different from the original, but hopefully better.

If it's well-received I may try writing out the stories again. This story "Beneath the Stars" is linked to my story "Beyond the Stars", although Beyond focuses on Invader Zim for most of the story, one or two chapters will eventually converge into this story. Whilst this story, on the other hand, will focus on the JTHM/SQUEE/I Feel Sick fandoms for the first few chapters, and will eventually become a crossover of Invader Zim involving mostly Gaz.

The main pairings are as follows: Todd/Gaz, Todd/Johnny in the far future (their relationship is deep but will remain platonic most of the time), and some implied or one-sided Pepito/Todd, Todd/Devi, and Johnny/Devi. Other pairings may pop up ("Beyond the Stars" will eventually be a ZADR) later but that's it for now.

Hope you guys enjoy, and if you do, please review. I do welcome constructive criticism as well as praise, but, I have moooost of this story kinda mapped out already, so please refrain from "I would do this instead" or "these other characters would be better together" kind of comments. I'm not an OTP kind of person, I'm very mercurial with pairings, so if you like Todd/Gaz or Todd/Johnny better than one or the other, well, I do too but I still like both, and if you don't, please respect it anyways. Same if you prefer Pepito/Todd written a different way than I do in this story, or if you like Gaz/Devi or Gaz/Tak or whatever best. I respect whatever you guys like, too, but this is the story I want to tell, and I hope you enjoy it for what it is. Now, without further ado... ))

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Todd Casil was no longer a boy. He was only just barely a man, but it had been a long time since he considered himself to be 'innocent'. It had been a long time since he remembered what it felt like to be shocked by the darkness in the world around him.

There were plenty of traumatic moments in his childhood that could have been responsible for his increasingly disheartening worldview, but it wasn't the demons or the alien abductions, or the horrors of horrors that couldn't even be named that had done it. It was the betrayal of his own parents that broke his childlike soul, when they had locked him away and left him to rot in that asylum cell.

He'd been confined in that hell for nearly a year, a year of being mocked by the doctors and nurses, poked and prodded with needles, and force-fed medication that he didn't need. The pills made his nightmare visions even worse instead of curing them like the doctors had insisted they would. Todd couldn't even run from them when he was tied up in his straight-jacket. All he could do was shut his eyes tight, but the monsters whispered in his ears even when he tried to sleep, and he never really slept there anyways.

One day the nurses tied him to a gurney, and they pushed him into a dimly lit room and left him there. The monsters cackled in devilish delight from the shadows that leapt between the flickering lights, 'They're going to take your brain! And then, when you can't speak of it to anyone else, they'll take the rest of your organs too!'

Terrified and quickly losing hope, Todd shut his eyes and prayed. But not to god - What had he ever done for him anyways? Instead, he prayed to the one person he had ever actually counted on to help him, the last person in that moment that he had any faith left in.

The Antichrist heeded his prayer as soon as he had finished it, appearing from nowhere in the dingy hospital room. "Hola, amigo. Need some help?"

Ever since then, Todd had been living with Pepito at his mother and father's house, which he hadn't stepped foot out of since the day he'd arrived. Pepito and his mother always had a meal for him whenever he got hungry. There were books for him to read, and television to watch. He ate, and he read, and he watched. He listened to Pepito talk about his days at school, though Pepito seldom had anything good to say. He found fault with everyone, the jocks and cheerleaders of course, but also the nerds and even the smart kids. They were vapid idiots, or spineless, or too conceited even if they were smart and not-spineless.

Todd had always wondered what Pepito saw in him when he found fault with so many others, and he began to suspect it was because he depended on him, to protect him from the nightmares, so at first Todd was always eager to agree with him and do whatever he wanted, even if Todd didn't really agree or want to. Pepito had been the one person who could and did protect him when he needed someone more than he ever had, when the people who had legal ownership of him had betrayed him to a fate worse than death. So of course he believed him at first when he told him it wasn't safe for him in the world outside his home and his protection, and though Todd had sincerely agreed at first when he was a child and for a few years after, he didn't really mean it anymore. He got restless, reading about and watching things but never experiencing them. He now only pretended to be content with and grateful for Pepito's protection.

Deep down, in his heart, he was not, and when he started to become a man, the feelings only became more intense. The restlessness for fresh air and curiousity for new experiences, versus the rage that still seethed about his parents, the need to confront them for all they had done to him and seek justice - These two feelings waged a constant but silent war within him.

The first year he'd come to live with the Diablo's, Pepito had told him, "It's okay to feel bad about what happened to you, amigo, but time will lessen your pain. You'll forget about it." Todd had believed at first him, but he was wrong. The pain slowly grew and become more unbearably frustrating with every day that passed. He got annoyed with Pepito always asking him if he was okay and what else he might want him to get him, but he didn't want to appear ungrateful, either. So he learned to hide it, asking only for his needs and little things like more books, and art supplies.

And Pepito of course never blinked twice if Todd drew a picture of some monstrosity or another. It was the nice pictures he drew on rare occasions, those were what Todd actually hid from him. Pictures of cute animals and pretty girls and boys doing normal stuff, like playing sports or driving around or just talking or smiling at each other.

Once Pepito had found a picture Todd drew of a boy and a girl kissing, and had asked him about it, much to Todd's embarrassment. Pepito was into both sexes, but he admitted that he personally liked the male form more. Todd had blushed and agreed, but to be completely honest, though he could freely admit to himself and Pepito that he liked the male form too, he still preferred females. Like most of his true opinions, though, he kept it to himself - It pleased Pepito more when Todd agreed with him.

So Todd agreed with him yet again when Pepito reminded him, burning the picture of the sweet young lovers, "It's just a fantasy, Todd. The world outside is cruel. You won't find the kind of happiness you want out there. Trust me."

"I do trust you, Pepito." He assured him convincingly, but it was in that moment that Todd began to realize with no small amount of shame - He'd come to hate his best friend.

A couple weeks passed after Todd's 18th birthday, which was celebrated, and he truly was grateful for the normal family experiences like Christmas and Thanksgiving he shared with Pepito's family, that he never had with his own. But it was celebrated like every other birthday before, like a -kid's- birthday, and when he blew out the candles, this time he really had a wish - To get out of this place.

Then, Pepito went on a 'business' trip with his father one weekend, and Pepito's mother just happened to go volunteering at a Bible Camp at the same time, leaving Todd at home alone except for only one of his guardians, Sargatanas. Alone to his own thoughts, with no one to pretend for.

'Did they EVER love you at all? Even when you were just a baby?' He silently wondered. It was far from the first time these thoughts had plagued his mind. 'Do they ever regret what they did to their own son? God damn it, I'm sick of being cooped up in his house, it's always so warm, so HOT, it's not enough to just open a stupid fucking window anymore-!'

The thoughts and feelings haunted him more than the visions. He didn't have them anymore since he'd stopped taking the medication the asylum forced down his throat, except when his dreams turned into nightmares at night, and though that had been rare for a while, it was getting common again. He couldn't stop thinking, even to save his sanity. If he had ever even been sane to begin with. Who even knew if he really had any sanity left anyways? For all he knew, he was probably still at the asylum, drooling on himself and sitting in his own excrement.

He had to get out of this house, he finally decided. He had to make sure there was a world outside. Pepito had come to trust him so much, he actually left him with Sargatanas instead of Fleurety this week - He must have needed her ferocious battle spirit, and the rest of the demon generals, for something big. Todd knew he would have never gotten past Fleurety, but Sargatanas was not as sharp-minded as her. Todd had turned the TV to the food channel, had gotten the hungry demon in the mood for something complex to make, and then requested he make it. Sargatanas orders from Pepito weren't just to "protect" (guard) Todd, but also to fulfill his every whim and request. So he jumped to obey, and went to the kitchen, where Todd knew he would be for at least two hours. Five minutes in, he slipped out of the house without a second thought.

Passing the front door, he quietly closed it before darting off into a run. The wind on his face and the sun on his skin was unbelievably refreshing, but it did nothing to relieve the bitterness still stirring in his heart and soul. He could have gone anywhere else in the world, he was free. But there was only one thing his obsessed mind could think to do.

His house wasn't far, he made it there in less than twenty minutes. He passed by Johnny's old house, but he didn't even look at it. He had a mission, and besides that, he was too freaked out that if he even glanced at the windows, he'd see those freaky eyes staring back at him.

His father's old car wasn't parked in the driveway, it had been replaced by a much newer and nicer one. Todd almost was angered to think they might have moved away, until he checked the mailbox, and sure enough, his mother and father's names were still on the envelopes.

Sneaking away into the backyard, Todd caught sight of an open window and began to listen to the voices coming from inside of it. He recognized his father's voice right away, speaking to someone else on a phone.

"Shit man, yer kidding - Well you gotta tell her to get rid of it, buddy. Trust me on this, having a kid is the worst damn mistake you could ever make. It's not gonna fix your marriage, that -thing- is just going to make you miserable, drive you crazy, eat all your food and cost you all your money. We had this crazy little fucker once, had to throw him in a loony bin. Heard that place caught on fire a few years ago. Hopefully that pain in the ass burned up with all the rest of the human garbage..."

Well, well. Speak of the devil. Todd's rage burned within his heart, hotter than the fires of hell. He had made -him- miserable? He drove -him- crazy? Just because, god forbid, his growing body needed extra food and other things that cost -money-, was that really all his father had ever seen when he looked at him?

Todd went around to the other side of the house, where another window led to the kitchen, which had recently been remodeled. His mother was usually in there, but she wasn't at the moment, and Todd used the opportunity to climb into the window. All the appliances in the kitchen were new, including a nice new knife set. Todd pondered over them for a moment, but then he noticed a meat-tenderizing mallet his mother had left out from pounding steaks earlier.

Todd's lips stretched into a grin as he glanced over the small but numerous spikes at the end of the tool. He took it by the base, feeling the weight of it, and nodded to himself. It was perfect. His father had always been so -blunt- with him, after all, so what better way to take him out?

His father was sitting in a chair, still on the phone. "I know, she's gonna be all emotional about it, but you'll thank me later... Alright man. See ya." He finally ended the call and put the phone down, and then he reached for the channel changer.

Todd abrupted stepped out from behind his chair, blocking the television screen with his body. His father gasped and his eyes went wide at the sight of the familiar face, but before he could shout out, Todd swung the meat mallet against the side of the man's temple, knocking him out of his chair and to the ground. He kicked him in the stomach while he was down without shame, and then reached down and whacked him good and hard twice more in the side of his head, leaving bloody imprints from the mallet's spikes on his ear.

"You son of a bitch," Todd growled, savoring the coward's fearful face, the power rushing over him. "You fucking piece of SHIT-!" He shouted, bringing the hammer down on his forehead once more, and this time his father's eyes shut and he stayed down.

Todd had been about to hit him again anyways. He was going to bash in his face until his nose and mouth were nothing but a bloody mess, literally. He raised the mallet with both hands and was about to bring it down when-

"Todd?"

He stopped, and looked up. His mother had just emerged from the kitchen. She was looking right at him, and her eyes... Todd couldn't remember ever seeing her look at him like that, with clarity and recognition. She actually recognized him, she'd said his name.

"Oh Todd, my baby, what are you doing...?" Those big brown eyes misted up with clear tears. "Honey, please, put that down... Come to me, sweetheart. You don't know how much I've missed you. I kept hoping every day that you'd get well and come home... Come give your mother a hug..."

Despite everything he knew about her, he wanted to believe her. Maybe she meant it, maybe she had gotten better too while he was away and remembered him now, maybe his father was the only one who truly hated him, maybe his mother understood why he had to do this and forgave him and really wanted to be his mother again. His mind was feverish with all the desperate hopes, he wanted to believe her, and himself, so badly it ached.

He dropped the mallet next to his unconscious father, and began to slowly approach his mother. "Mom...?" He murmured weakly, barely breathing. "You were really waiting for me...? Do you, still love me...?" He begged to know.

"Of course, my baby boy... Come give me a hug now..." She implored, and he couldn't deny himself any longer. He rushed over to give her a hug, finding himself much taller next to her than he last remembered being. He put his hand on his shoulders and rested his head against her bosom, sobbing.

"Mom...! I just, I just always wanted you to love me, you and dad, but dad, he put me away in that awful place while you were addicted to the pills, whatever he told you was a lie, I'm not crazy-" He rushed to explain to her, soaking her shirt with tears.

But suddenly, he gasped, his watery eyes going as wide as they could as intense pain literally stabbed through the back of his shoulder. He looked up into his mother's eyes, so sincere and sorry before, were now distorted with a demonic delight. "You crazy fucking idiot!" She barked out an uncontrollable laugh. "Who could love someone as pathetic as you?! Do the world a favor and just DIE-!"

She was about to bring the knife she had hidden behind her back down on him again, and Todd swore in that instant, she could stab him a thousand times and he would still find a way to tear her apart for her betrayal-But then suddenly, a second knife reached around his mother's neck from behind, and Todd looked up. That broad smile of semi-crooked, yellowed teeth and mop of dirty, disheveled black hair was as terrifying as it had ever been. Todd and his mother both gasped as a line of red started to freely flow down her neck, spurting a bit too, right in Todd's face and mouth.

The coppery taste of his mother's own blood made him gag, and he doubled over to one side as she toppled over to the other. Todd was bleeding heavily from his own wound, and the wooziness he felt from the blood loss coupled with the surreal situation made him pass out.

Johnny made quick work finishing off the father in the same way he'd done to the mother, and then went back to where the unconscious Todd laid. He tsked, "You're a lot different than I remember you, Squeegee..." He mumbled to himself in displeasure, tapping his jaw as he pondered, "What am I gonna do with you..."

Johnny made his decision as quickly as he ever did, then he bent down to pick the younger boy up - Younger, but definitely no longer smaller - And carried him back to his place.

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	2. An Offer He Can't Refuse

(( Author's Notes: Just a friendly reminder, this story is a rewrite. If it seems different than you remember if you read it last time, that's why. I'm trying to eliminate as much of the filler as possible and just write the plot of the story, because if I don't it'll probably never get written, lol. =P Now, without further ado, here's chapter 2, and PRETTY please review! =D ))

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Todd navigated through nightmares the rest of the day and throughout the night. He finally awoke with a gasp just as the rays of the sun were coming over the horizon, finding himself in a dark room. He could barely see anything. The first sensation he rediscovered was smell, and it made him gag. Rot and mildew, it was everywhere.

As his eyes slowly started to readjust to the lack of light, he began to make out the rest of his surroundings. He was laying down on a smelly old couch, with a filthy blanket on top of him, which he immediate threw off of him as he sat up. Pain shot through his shoulder and down his back as he did this, but he ignored it as best as he could for now. The room was Spartan except for one nearly-empty bookshelf and an old, broken TV, which wouldn't have worked even if the screen wasn't kicked in, since 'rabbit'ears' were long since a thing of the past.

Then a human-like figure stepped into Todd's peripheral vision, and he made his trademark 'Squee' sound as he turned his heard towards it. Fear shot through his chest, his heart squeezing painfully and then jumping out of control with terror as he realized who it was.

"Hello Squee." Johnny greeted him, though his tone made it clear he wasn't very glad to see him.

Todd gulped, resisting the urge to bolt out of the house like a chicken with it's head cut off. "H-Hi Johnny..."

The homicidal maniac let out a sigh, and then slowly approached the boy. Todd realized he had a can in his hands just before the older man politely offered him, "Beans?"

Despite how hungry he was, Todd declined, though just as politely, so as not to be a rude guest to his terrifying host. "No thanks, Johnny. I feel kind of sick right now..." Which wasn't actually a lie. He should have been freezing, but instead he was burning up, and his stomach, although empty, didn't feel up to digesting anything at the moment. Especially not a can of beans that was past it's expiration date by three years.

Johnny nodded in understanding. "Yeah, you're gonna have some flu-like symptoms for a couple days until that stab wound heals. Which reminds me," His voice became stern and scary again. "What was going on over there, anyways? You were always such a nice Squeegee. I mean, I trust you must have some good reason. That's why I went ahead and finished the job for you. That trick your mom pulled on you was really mean, and your dad was always an asshole, so I figured they deserved it... But why did you even go back there? I hadn't seen you in years, I figured you moved somewhere else."

The information settled on Todd like a ton of bricks, and it felt like a second ton came crashing down on him as he realized what he'd done, what he'd tried to do. Tears welled up in his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. They weren't for the death of his parents, though. They were for himself, for the parents he'd never even had, and the hell those people had made him endure. It was a fitting end for them that they were now rotting in and stinking up the house that had always been more important to them than their own son.

Johnny silently sat by him as he cried, not interrupting him, not touching him, just letting him get it out of his system. Crying people usually made him uncomfortable, and therefore angry. But Todd was different. The kid always had a tough life, and it looked like it was going to get worse before it got any better.

Finally Todd managed to choke out, "Th-They l-locked me away! In a crazy house, they t-told them I was crazy! It was, horrible..." He sniffled, stubbornly rubbing away his tears with the back of his hand, even though they still kept coming. "The doctors, they... They burned Shmee..." He admitted, because strangely, the monster next to him reminded him of his old friend, whom the doctors had proclaimed was 'an emotional crutch', that was only impeding Todd's recovery. That was when things had really gotten unbearable, alone without Shmee's voice to cancel out the whispers of his demons.

Johnny couldn't say he was sorry to hear the lying bastard teddy was gone, but he felt sorry for Todd, who had always relied on the bear to ease his terribly stressful life. "That sucks. I'm sorry you had to go through all that, Squee." He replied sincerely, then added, "Guess they really did deserve it, then. But I never thought you-"

Todd interrupted him quickly, "I never thought I would, either... I don't think I was feeling well even before I got stabbed..." He mentioned, suddenly realizing that despite all the pain he was still in, his head felt clearer than it had in years. He actually felt better than not about the death of his parents, which made him feel guilty for a moment, but only a moment. Johnny was right - They really had deserved it. Still, he was awfully glad he hadn't actually done it himself. It suddenly seemed like such a terrible thing to really DO, he'd really been behaving like a monster. He vowed not to let himself become like that again. "Maybe I really am crazy..." He mused, mostly to himself.

"Pft. Big deal." Johnny rolled his eyes and crossed his legs as he leaned back against the couch. "Everyone's crazy. It's not a matter of IF you're crazy, it's how crazy and what kind of crazy you are." He pointed out. "You're actually probably the sanest person I know." Which wasn't saying much, but Todd decided to just take the compliment.

"Thanks, Johnny..." But worry was still etched on his features, so Johnny asked him what was the matter. "It's just... I'm not sure what I'm going to do now..." Todd confessed miserably. "I wanted so badly to be free, but now that I am, I don't know what to do with this freedom. I guess I didn't really think it through. I don't have anywhere to go, not a penny to my name, no one who cares..."

"Hey," Johnny sounded a little wounded. "I care about you, Squeegee. At least, I think I do. I've never done much caring so it's hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure I care about you. And if you want, you can stay here!" He offered with a big, scary grin.

Todd's eyes went wide and he immediately regretted sharing his worries with the maniac. Now he had to find a way to put this delicately. "Th-That's really nice of you to offer, Johnny, BUT, I really don't think it would work. No offense." He added quickly, "But I'm pretty sure you wouldn't want me or anyone else as a roommate, I'd probably start to bug you after a while..." And Todd did NOT want to run the risk of bugging Johnny too much.

"You're probably right!" Johnny agreed, his grin never faltering. "But that's what's so perfect - I don't even live here anymore!" Todd raised an eyebrow at him, so the homicidal maniac explained, "I have a cabin in the woods a couple hours from here, that's where I've been spending most of my time for the past seven years. It's peaceful out there, no people to annoy me. I just come back here to get supplies and check on the house every once in a while. So I wouldn't be around for us to bug each other, except for just two or three times a year. That wouldn't be so bad, right? And it would actually be nice to have someone look after the place while I'm gone, you know, to make sure hobos aren't sneaking in."

Todd had to admit it was almost a tempting offer now. Beggars couldn't be choosers, after all, and the only other choices he had was to be homeless or go back to Pepito, which wasn't even an option. He sort of felt bad about just leaving his friend behind, but he couldn't go back until he'd managed to achieve some independence for himself, otherwise Pepito would insist he come back. But he still had plenty of other concerns about Johnny's offer.

"That really is nice of you Johnny, but..." He knew what he was about to say was going to sound crazy, but Johnny had never been the type to judge people for being insane. Just pretty much everything else. "Well, the spirits of the people you killed have been haunting my dreams all night. I think they're mad about their bodies still just sitting around here after all these years. And, well, rotting bodies kind of presents a sanitation hazard..." Although after seven years, a great deal of those bodies were nothing but skeletons by now.

"Oh yeeeah..." Johnny mused, sucking on a spoonful of beans for a moment as he thought. "Well, we could clean the place up? I probably should have done that a while ago, but I'm hardly ever here anymore, and I kind of never cared before, so..." He shrugged. "It will be a chore, but I'm willing to do it if you are? It's a pretty big job, but between the two of us and a few dozen gallons of bleach, I think we can make this place livable for you. What do you say?"

Todd was still hesitant, but he knew he was backed into a corner here. Johnny would probably get offended if he continued to try and turn down his generous offer, and Todd really didn't have much of a choice. The younger man figured, 'Well, maybe I can make it work just as long as I need to, and move somewhere else once I've made enough money...'

So finally he nodded. "Well, if you're really sure it's okay with you...?"

Johnny emptied the last spoonful of beans into his mouth and then tossed the can across the room without shame. "Sure, how hard could it be to clean a house!"

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When Pepito got back home later that weekend, he found Sargatanas with an enormous turkey dinner set at the table, with all the fixin's. And for some weird reason, he had a blow-up doll at the table, which had once been blonde but he'd taken a black marker to it. Pepito figured it was some kind of joke and at first asked innocently, "Where's Todd?" As in, where in the house is Todd, since he didn't expect him to be anywhere else.

Sargatanas sweated, "...Uhhm... T-T-Todd is r-right here of course, m-my lord..." He replied shakily, gesturing towards the stupid-ass doll.

Pepito's eyes went wide and grabbed his minion's face, burning his handprint across his flesh with hellish fury, "WHERE THE HELL IS TODD!?"

Sargatanas screamed, "I'M SORRY MY LORD! I LOOKED ALL OVER BUT I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE HE WENT, I SWEAR I'VE BEEN LOOKING-!"

Still grabbing his face, Pepito dragged him towards the front door and hurled him to the street. Then with a ferocious growl, he stepped out of the house himself. He could only blame Sargatanas so much, he had trusted Todd just as much as Pepito had foolishly done. Pepito's dark heart hurt much more than he could possibly make the other demon feel, although he was nowhere near done with him yet, he was hurt much more by Todd's betrayal.

But he at least had a good idea of where he'd be, and he rushed to get there. He, the Antichrist, actually even prayed, begged all the powers that be, to please let Todd still be himself when he found him...

He kicked in the door when he got to Todd's parent's home, proceeded into the living room... And stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of the bloodied bodies.

All those years... All that trust. For nothing. It was clear who the only culprit could be, the only person with any motive for the 'crime'. Enraged, Pepito kicked the father's corpse and then spit on it for good measure before searching the rest of the house. Finding it empty, he stomped out of the house with a deep scowl.

Then he looked at the house directly to the left. The Todd he thought he knew would have never gone near it, but if he'd lost his mind, who knows, it might be the first place he'd go. So the demon stomped over and let himself in, not blowing the door off it's flimsy hinges only out of respect for what he knew it was and what had happened there. This place almost even gave him, the prince of darkness, the heebie-jeebies.

But Todd wasn't there, and he indeed searched the whole place, which took him a good hour, and then another twenty minutes to run back up all those stairs, glad to be out in the fresh air himself when he was done.

He addressed his generals outside of the 'house'. "If you find Todd, notify me at once. Detain him, but do not kill him unless you must. If he has gone mad and attacks you, kill him only if you must, and do it as painlessly as possible. But beware, if one of his kind kill you, you can die for good. I won't be able to revive you." Pepito wasn't actually afraid of the chance that the strongest demons in hell could actually be killed by Todd, but who knew what his old friend might be capable of now. As much as he still wanted to help his best friend, even despite his betrayal, he realized the only thing he could do now was give him as merciful death as he could manage. He knew Todd wouldn't want to live in the nightmare he was now trapped in.

In a new black car, from behind dark-tinted windows, Senior Diablo watched his son down the street. He regretted nothing, but still, it was hard as a father to watch his son be in so much pain, and over a human no less. He really wanted to tear the mortal apart himself, he had ever since Pepito had brought the miserable little urchin into their home.

But the devil well knew, this was the only matter on Earth that he could not trespass on. As much as he resented it, he could only watch and see how all of this panned out...

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	3. The Candidacy of Sacrificed Souls

(( A.N. Hey guys, a slight change was made to the end of the last chapter, just to letcha know. Hope you like this chapter, and if so you might also like it's sister fic, "Beyond the Stars". PLEASE review! ^^ ))

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Todd had spent the weekend healing, and then he and Johnny had left to go buy cleaning supplies, pretty much right before Pepito had arrived. By the time they got back, Pepito had left, and no one was any the wiser.

They had a whole cart full of bleach, mops, buckets, scrub-brushes, a rented carpet cleaner, and various other cleaning supplies, which Johnny had paid for with a stash of stolen cash he had in his house, the odds and ends that had once belonged to his unfortunate victims.

They worked all day, and by the time it got dark, the top level room actually looked pretty good. Most of the old bloodstains had been scrubbed away, the trash had been tossed - It was far from the picture of a perfect home, but it was a refreshingly noticeable improvement. Todd removed his face mask and breathed in the new bleachy-clean smell appreciatively.

"What do you think, Johnny?" He asked, smiling over at his old neighbor. "Not bad for the first day! You said you had a few basement levels underneath though, right? How many exactly are there?" He was trying to figure out if they'd need any extra bleach for the job.

"Hmm..." Johnny took far too long thinking about the question for Todd's comfort, before finally answering, "I miiight be wrong, but I wanna say there's at least forty-five, maybe fifty levels underneath..." He guessed nonchalantly.

Todd's eyes bugged out and he sputtered, "F-FIFTY?!" He couldn't be serious!

"Yeah, this place is definitely bigger on the inside..." Johnny 'joked'.

Todd sighed, trying to wrap his head around this place. "And definitely a bigger job than I imagined..."

Johnny raised an eyebrow, "What, you really wanna clean the WHOLE thing?" He asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah...?" Todd replied as softly as he could. "I just really don't think I can rest easily here unless we do..."

At first Johnny looked annoyed, which scared Todd. He was worried he was being too much of an inconvenience and that Johnny might be thinking he was pushing it. Todd wasn't sure how to handle this man or what to think of him - He'd saved him before too, from that disgusting pervert he'd foolishly accepted 'help' from that one time when he was still very little and naive. He was very grateful to Johnny for that, but he'd also never cared to spare him the dark and dirty details of the world that most people thought children should be blissfully unaware of. As traumatizing as it was, though, he'd still done it to help the hapless boy. He'd actually never done anything to Todd that wasn't meant to help him. So, although he certainly didn't trust Johnny, he felt the need to at least give him the benefit of a doubt.

"Look," Todd quickly amended, "If it's too much of a hassle for you, I'd understand. I'll do it all myself, as long as it's okay with you. If not, that's okay too, I can just find someplace else-"

Johnny rolled his eyes and sighed out a growl, "No, no, no - I get it, this place is WAY overdue for a Spring Cleaning. I'll help you - I made the mess, after all. It's just, two things - One, exactly HOW clean do you want this place? Coz there's, like, several tunnel-rooms and one big tunnel at the bottom that could just be sealed off..."

Todd sighed, recalling his disturbing dreams and what the ghosts had told him, "They need to be immersed in earth or burned..."

Johnny nodded, not thinking any of this sounded crazy at all. "Okay, that's reasonable. So two, lets really focus on getting this done as quickly as we can. I don't like being in populated areas too long. I might get tempted to add another body to this place if I stay too long..." They'd nearly had an encounter earlier that day when they went to buy the cleaning supplies, over a guy who kept giving Nny a 'funny look', but Todd had quickly evaded the situation by pulling Johnny to a different aisle.

Part of Todd had been hoping Johnny would be against it and he could use the excuse to go. Being homeless would suck but this was a turning out to be a pretty big inconvenience too. But at the same time, he was actually looking forward to the task ahead, too. Todd's parents had never let him make messes when he was a child, and while staying with Pepito, Todd had always been considerate and offered to help his mother with chores every time they needed to be done. He wasn't a neat-freak, but he couldn't stand to see such an outstanding amount of filth left to fester, either.

"Yeah, I definitely don't want that to happen." Todd agreed, hoping his wouldn't be the body Johnny was tempted to add. "So, how about this - Since you don't like sleeping anyways, how about you clear out bodies during the night, and I'll sanitize the rooms during the day?" He really hoped that seemed fair, since Johnny was the one who put those bodies there to begin with. "That way you're less likely to run into people."

"Yeah, I guess that's fair." Johnny agreed. "Those bodies should be a lot lighter now than they were, so I should be able to move them by myself..."

Todd sighed with relief. Bleaching away the blood left behind was one thing, but he really hadn't wanted to touch the actual bodies or their bones. Johnny loaded up the trunk his clunker of a car with as many bones as he could fit, and then he drove them out to a bog about thirty minutes outside of the city limits and dumped them.

Todd had tried to sleep while he was gone, but ghostly nightmares of screaming souls plagued him every time he tried to shut his eyes. When Johnny got back, despite his reservations, he ended up helping him clear the bodies out after all. Despite how creepy and just plain weird it was, it gave Todd a sense of purpose. Most of these people had probably been total assholes, but they still deserved to rot in peace, and he wanted it done as quickly as he could so he could rest peacefully too.

By flashlight alone, they managed to clear out the first seven levels that night, and by morning Todd was so exhausted, he managed to sleep dreamlessly for almost two hours before he was awoken by another nightmare. He choked down a quick and simple breakfast of instant oatmeal, made with bottled water, since the running water had been turned off years ago, and then set to his task.

The lower levels not only went deeper, though, they got bigger too, with more and more rooms waiting to be purged. The first few levels only had a few rooms each, but once they'd gotten down a dozen levels, the corridors began getting longer, and it was creepier to try and navigate them with only a flashlight. Thankfully the ghosts didn't bother them while they were working, it was creepy enough to try and work with skeletons and partially rotted corpses. He kept expecting one of them to suddenly scream or grab at him. But the spirits probably wanted the place cleaned out just as much as Todd did, so they left him undisturbed as long as he was working on it.

On the fifth day, Todd found a few rooms on the thirty-eighth floor that, unlike most of the other rooms so far, contained neither long-dead victims or a collection of weapons or torture devices. Instead, every inch of the walls were written or drawn on. As a fellow artist Todd couldn't help but take some time to admire the work. Some walls had entire murals on them of various monstrous creatures, disturbing but in great detail.

But then other walls had a collection of ridiculous scribbles and doodles that no one would think was made by the same person as the intricate murals. Todd read a few lines of what was written, and then stopped. It hurt his brain trying to make heads or tails of the nonsense.

Johnny appeared behind him a moment later, "Oh hey... I forgot about these rooms..." He mentioned, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. "Man I hate seeing my old work..."

"Why? These are really good!" Todd encouraged him. "Much better than I can do. I'm not bad at drawing, but I'm only so-so. My writing is much better." He added.

"Well, thanks, I guess..." Johnny sighed. "But it's not just the pictures, it's the memories..."

Todd frowned. "Sorry..." He replied awkwardly, wanted to empathize, but he couldn't imagine what kind of memories were associated with the fearsome images, and he frankly didn't want to.

"I'd prefer to get rid of them too, if you wouldn't mind." Johnny added, suddenly sounding rather serious.

"Of course." Todd nodded, and he didn't bring it up again until they got to the room at the end of the hall, where a mural unlike any of the others was displayed. It was of a man, brown-haired and wearing glasses, a normal looking man, except, for some reason, Johnny had decided to give him black angel wings. They stretched out freely even though his bleeding, lacerated body was chained.

"Who is he?" The younger man breathed, needing to know.

"A regret." Johnny answered grumpily.

Todd raised an eyebrow, curiosity getting the better of him. "He had to be more than that, for you to draw him like that..."

At first it looked like Johnny was going to be stubborn and not answer, and Todd was going to let him. But then the older male sighed and shrugged, "He was a good man. He wasn't an asshole, he didn't deserve what I did to him. But I did it anyways. I felt like I had to, at the time, for my own crazy reasons... I regretted it, so, I drew this." Johnny's lip curled up in distaste at the sentiment.

"Can I keep it, Johnny? Please?" Todd suddenly requested, the first he'd made of the homicidal maniac. "I like this one. And, I think you should, for him. He deserves to be remembered. Also, I had some Catholic family members, and they believed in having a saint to protect the house. He can be the saint of this house." Lord knows it needed one. "Did you know his name?"

"...Edgar. Vargas." Johnny replied slowly. Edgar had been religious, he remembered, so he probably wouldn't mind. "And yeah, I guess it's okay... I won't be around to be bothered by it, after all..."

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

On the sixth day, while Todd and Johnny went out for more gallons of bleach and water, they stopped first at Johnny's insistence at a Taco Smell for lunch. Apparently he ate a lot of cold canned food and charred squirrel meat in the woods, and was craving something different.

Todd let Johnny eat one of the two tacos he'd bought for himself and ate one of his own before mentioning, "Thanks for lunch, Johnny. And for everything else..."

Johnny raised an eyebrow at him, "Yeah, no problem. Least I could do. You're doing more than your fair share too."

Todd shrugged, "Least I could do. But really... You've always been especially kind to me, when obviously, most other people aren't to your liking... I'm really grateful for your help, of course, I guess I just always wondered why? I've encountered a lot of scary things, Johnny, but you were one of the scariest. I think it was actually because you looked so much like me, just older... I used to be worried when I was a kid that you'd do to me what you did to them, but, now... Well you wouldn't be doing all this for me if you wanted to hurt me... Right? I just can't help but wonder why."

Johnny sighed and rolled his eyes - Sentimental musings weren't his thing. "I guess for the same reason, but reverse... You always kinda reminded me of a younger me. It's not just because you look a lot like me, either. All the stuff you went through, I... Well, I actually can't remember a lot of my childhood anymore, but I know it was terrible like yours. I guess I just always felt a sort of familiarity about you. Maybe that's why I always wanted things to be better for you."

Todd smiled soulfully at the other, until Johnny added, "I mean, I never hurt little kids anyways, but there was a time when I was so fuckin' crazy I might have killed you by accident. I wouldn't now, I've gotten a little better. I don't regret hurting people that deserved it, but I have hurt people before that didn't deserve it, and I really regret doing that. You definitely don't deserve it, so I won't hurt you physically, and I'll try not to hurt you any other ways too."

Todd's smile almost wavered, it twitched, but he forced it back upward. Johnny probably didn't realize it, but as much peace he found in the solitude of the forest, as much as he loved to forget his humanity whenever he could, he was still trapped in that mortal human body, and he needed human interaction from time to time as much as he needed food and water.

Todd simply nodded in understanding, "Thanks, Johnny..." He told him, before digging into his second taco.

By pure chance, Sargatanas was heading down the same street as the Taco Smell, at the exact same time Todd and Johnny were frequenting it. He was grumbling to himself about what he would do if he found Todd. As punishment for losing him, Pepito had burned the demon's skin completely off, gave him a new set, burned it again, and again, before he'd finally kicked his ass back to the curb to go look for Todd.

He'd been searching all over, along with most of the other top-ranking demons. They were all eager to be the one to find Todd and please their master - Though Pepito had been barely better than a petulant child since Todd disappeared, and no one really wanted to indulge his spoiled desires, they knew their true master 'Senior Diablo' would reward them handsomely if they continued to fulfill all his Dark Prince's whims.

While passing by the Taco Smell, Sargatanas spotted Todd coming out of the very same establishment he was heading towards, and he immediately seized the chance to redeem himself. The demon's special powers were astral projection and transportation, so he didn't waste any time advancing on Todd the second he had him in his sight.

Todd didn't immediately recognize Sargatanas' new skin (all the demons had been given replacements so they wouldn't be recognized) he just saw a strange man running at him. His eyes went big, and he stepped aside to get out of his way, but the man kept running towards him. Todd let out his signature squeak of terror, putting his arms up to protect himself, but then just as the demon was about to reach him, Johnny stepped in front of him, taking out one of several knives he had hidden on his person.

"You picked the wrong person to fuck with today, mister." The homicidal maniac growled, crossing the distance left between him and the demon in a flash.

Suddenly realizing there was someone else in the picture, Sargatanas tried to go around him at the last second, but Johnny caught him by the back of his jacket, right before the demon was about to reach for Todd, and threw him to the sidewalk. Then he leaped on top of the unknown man, bringing his knife down on his chest.

"Johnny, don't!" Todd cried in vain. He still didn't recognize Sargatanas, he just didn't want to see anyone to get hurt or for Johnny to hurt anyone. He was gripped with fear, and he nearly broke into a run from the terrifying sight, but something stronger steeled him there. He didn't want to fight, but he couldn't run from this anymore, whatever it was and why it had chosen him...

The unknown man was clutching the knife Johnny had plunged into him, to keep it inside him and to not let the blood gush out. It would only keep him alive a little bit longer, but he made use of that time, calling out to the younger man, "Todd..."

Todd didn't recognize his face or voice, but he could see recognition of himself in the man's eyes. He just had to know who he was and why he'd attacked him. Why was something always chasing or attacking him? He approached the bleeding man and kneeled down next to him. "Why-?" He'd just barely begun to ask, when suddenly, the dying demon grabbed his shoulder, and using the last of his strength, he transported them back to Pepito's house, right in the middle of the living room where Pepito had been sulking on the couch.

Todd fell over, disoriented from the ride, and Pepito immediately rushed to him, pinning him down since he naturally assumed Sargatanas' fate was his doing. Todd struggled against him weakly, casting doubt on Pepito's assumptions as he implored his best friend, "Pepito, you've got to help him!"

Pepito glanced over at the demon with only a small amount of pity. He'd been warned. "I'm sorry Sargatanas, but there's nothing even I can do for you now. I thank you for your years of service."

The demon's eyes went wide, and he nodded just once before the light of life left them. Pepito then steeled his gaze back at Todd, and he knew, they both had some 'splaining to do.

"What the hell, Todd." Pepito demanded of him first. "Why would you shun my protection, why would you KILL your parents? I couldn't care less about them, but do you have any idea what you've done to yourself?!" At first he'd been almost calm, but by the last sentence his voice was starting to get hysterical.

Todd narrowed his eyes at him. If Pepito thought he was going to cower and pacify him like he usually did, well this time he was wrong. "I DIDN'T kill my parents, Pepito! But why don't YOU tell me what would have happened if I did? What the hell have you been supposedly -protecting- me from? You tell me that, Pepito!"

The demon prince stared down at the boy in shock. "...Agaliarept. Asmodeus." He called, and the two demons appeared behind him, ready to serve. "Say what you just said again, Todd. You two tell me if he's lying or telling the truth." He instructed.

Todd took a deep breath. Agaliarept had the power to reveal secrets and mysteries, and Asmodeus could read thoughts. But he wasn't worried about either, because he was telling the truth. "I did NOT kill my parents. I attacked my dad, but then my mom stabbed me. Johnny C finished them both off before they did the same to me. I haven't killed anyone."

The two demons glanced back at Pepito. "His mind hides nothing. He speaks the truth." Asmodeus answered, and Agaliarept nodded with him in agreement, and then as quickly as they came, they left.

Instantly relieved, Pepito flung his arms around Todd shoulders, hugging him tight. Tighter than Todd could struggle against, so he didn't bother. "I'm so glad to hear that, amigo..."

He took a calming breath, still and unmoving in his friend's embrace. Todd was still ticked off, but he didn't push Pepito away, though part of him really wanted to, part of him also wanted to return that hug, and he restrained that part of him too. "WHY are you so glad to hear it, Pepito?" He insisted on knowing first.

The antichrist sighed and stepped back from the unrequited hug, but held on to Todd's shoulders securely. Todd still let him. Then Pepito gave Todd a 'you really should know this already' sort of look. "Todd, you've always known you were different from other humans on Earth, you saw and experienced things they never do. Some people are just like that, you're not the only one, you just happen to be amigos with me, future prince of Earth. I just wanna protect my best friend, Todd. I always thought of you as the little brother I always wish I had..."

Todd took another steely breath, -really- restraining the urge to hit the demon now. That was all just lies, and really damn manipulative ones too. Todd was the one who always wished Pepito was the brother he never had, had always wished Rosemary was the mother he never had, that the whole charade they'd been playing for the past several years was true, but it wasn't. They'd never spoken of it outright, but Todd knew what Pepito really wanted from him, what he really wished Todd was to him. He'd caught Pepito giving him those fiery gazes more than once. But Pepito never pushed him to do anything, he had to admit that at least to himself.

He let out the breath, bull-like. "Pepito, I don't have to be a mind-reader like Asmodeus to know you're hiding something that concerns me from me!" Todd suddenly shouted, glaring at his 'friend' and reminding him harshly, "Friends don't do that! And if you want to know why I left in the first place, listen up - I'm really grateful to you that you rescued me from the asylum without asking for my soul in return. You've included me in your family and sheltered me while I was still a child without asking anything in return, and I swear to you, I really, truly am more grateful than I can ever say for that. But, you keep asking me to voluntarily give you my soul, and you just say that if I do it will protect me, but you won't tell me why! You can't expect me to not think something's up with that!"

Pepito looked offended, but also at least a little ashamed of himself. "Okay amigo, that's fair, just calm down-"

"No! I'm not done!" Todd abruptly interrupted him, getting it all off his chest while he still had the nerve. "Now about all this stuff that just happened - I'm sorry I just left without telling you, for worrying you. I haven't been feeling well for a while, and I should have told you, but I wasn't sure I should when you were hiding other stuff from me! Then you were so worried about me killing my abusive asshole parents you sic your demons on me, and you were so relieved when you found out it was Johnny who killed them and now everything's fine - WHY?"

Now Pepito was definitely more offended than ashamed, and he barked back at Todd, "Todd, seriously, CALM DOWN! If you really wanna know, I'll tell you everything I know, okay?" He sighed and rubbed his forehead around his horns.

Todd took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. It worked, but just barely. "Okay. I'm listening."

Pepito finally took his hands back from Todd's stiff shoulders and put them in his pocket. "Like I said amigo, you ARE different from most other humans. There's a handful of others out there like you, but that's it..."

"Like me how?" Todd pressed.

The Dark Prince sighed, "I don't know how else to say this Todd, but... Your awful parents aren't the only curse you were born with..."

"I'm cursed?" He restrained the urge to add 'tell me something new', and instead settled for, "How?"

Pepito looked around, as if suspicious of being spied on in his own home. "This world we live on, our home planet... It's kind of like a cannibal. Like an angry god who demands sacrifices. Certain humans are randomly chosen, and out of that group, one of them is not-so-randomly chosen to fulfill a dark, ancient role. They're driven to madness, compelled to kill. The energy of the souls that die accumulate until there is enough, and then, they're flushed away into the lifestream of the planet, like waste to be renewed and reintegrated into usable energy. That's why we call the unlucky human chosen to fulfill this role, the 'waste lock'."

Todd swallowed, his throat thick with fear. "And... I'm the waste lock?"

"No, no!" Pepito rushed to correct him, "That's why I was so relieved! You could have become the waste lock though, which is why I was so worried. You, Todd, are one of the four chosen humans that can become the waste lock, we call them waste lock candidates. When a new waste lock is needed, the waste lock candidates are tempted by dark forces to kill. The first candidate to give in to this urge and kill another human being, they become the waste lock."

Todd's eyes went wide with realization. He'd come so close to losing everything, even and especially his mind. But also his memories, crappy though they were, and his humanity, underrated as it was. They were still his. Johnny had unknowingly saved him from that terrible fate, and it wasn't the first time either...

"So you must understand," Pepito went on, relieved at the look of realization on his friend's face. "That's why, once I realized what you were, I had to protect you from that... And if you really wanna know, that's why I keep asking you to give us your soul. Because it's the only way to save you from this curse."

Todd couldn't deny he was curious about that and awfully tempted, but he knew not to accept deals with anyone, especially the devil, without knowing all the details. "And how would giving you my soul save me, Pepito?" He asked blandly, as if they were talking about something completely mundane.

"Because..." Pepito almost growled back. He was trying to give Todd everything he ever wanted, if only the stubborn boy would really think about it. "If you gave us your soul, you could use your wish to be free from your role of waste lock candidate. You could finally live a life free from your curse."

Todd was no fool. Anything that sounded that good could never be true, and even though Pepito was trying to skate around the dilemma, Todd put it together for himself. "The catch being," He retorted dryly, "Is that if I'm free, someone else will have to be enslaved in my place." Not to mention, if Senior Diablo owned his soul, he'd eventually have to pay a price that he knew would be far steeper than it was worth.

This time Pepito did growl, he downright snarled, and huffed out a breath of flame to the side of him. "BAH! Todd, why does such a trivial thing matter to you?! You're special, who cares if one of the -billions- of assholes on this planet takes your place?!"

"I won't do it, Pepito." Todd answered, his resolve unmoving. "I will not make someone else face the horrors I've been through, but ESPECIALLY not a child - Because it would have to be a child, wouldn't it." He knew because of what Johnny had said about his own childhood, how it was so similar to his. No doubt the demons would only accept a young, new, -fresh- sacrifice... Todd couldn't help but shudder.

Pepito sighed deeply and irritably, knowing this was a battle he wasn't going to win peaceably. Todd was right. The darkness would only accept a replacement for it's chosen sacrifice if it was younger or significantly stronger. Either way Todd would never agree. "Then the only way I can protect you-"

Todd wouldn't let him finish what he knew he was going to say. "Pepito, stop, and listen to me very cafefully. I am truly grateful to you for protecting me when I needed you." He suddenly reached over and gathered his friend into a tight hug, and murmured against his shoulder. "I really am... But it can't go on like this anymore. Your protectiveness is more like a prison. I still want to be your friend, but I want to live my own life too..."

Pepito hugged Todd back tightly, breathing subtly against Todd's neck. "I think I understand, amigo..." He remembered back when Todd had drawn that picture, and the initial look of betrayal Todd hadn't been able to hide when Pepito had burned it. Pepito regretted it now, and even then he knew he shouldn't do it right before he did. But the girl in the picture... Well, certainly is had to be only a coincidence that she looked so much like THAT girl, the one that the Underworld had it's radar on for years, because Todd had never met her. But it had still unnerved him more than he would ever admit. "You wanna do normal human stuff, like get a job, get your own place, and have a girlfriend or maybe even two, right?" He pulled back and gave his friend a knowing smile.

Todd blushed but smiled back, "Yes, Pepito, exactly..." He hoped beyond hope that his friend truly understood.

"Okay," Pepito nodded, "But, in the meantime, where are you gonna stay until you get a job and find your own place? Even just renting costs quite a lot, Todd, and you probably couldn't even be hired anywhere but a burger joint with only your GED..." Rosemary had tutored Todd at home and Pepito would take in his work. It had secretly been one of the few activities Todd really enjoyed in that house. "And then on top of that, until a new waste lock candidate is chosen, you're still in danger. You'll be tempted to kill..."

"Now that I know about that, I'll be able to fight the urge." Todd insisted, disappointed with Pepito estimation of him. "My parents were the only people I had such a strong vendetta against. People can be assholes but I promise I won't kill anyone. I'll run from danger if it comes to me, I swear. And, as for where I'll stay, it just so happens that my old neighbor Johnny has graciously offered to let me stay in his old house, since he doesn't live there anymore..." He was trying to look casual about his undeniably weird option, but Pepito pointed it out right away.

And he gave his friend a very odd look. "Um, Todd... I'm pretty sure you know Johnny was the last waste lock, right? He's kinda almost all dried up, like a battery running out of juice, but he's still really dangerous. Just look what he did to Sargatanas."

"Sargatanas attacked us! If I knew it was him I would have tried to help! And Johnny's never tried to hurt me, he's only ever helped me." Todd countered, "He's not even going to stay any longer than it takes to help me clean the place up."

"Todd, are you even listening to yourself? You're cleaning up a mass gravesite with a serial killer so you can bunk there?"

"It's only going to be temporary! Until I get a job and save up enough to get a new place, and then-"

"Todd. Todd, for crying out loud, listen..." Pepito reached up and rubbed his forehead. "You don't need to toil like a slave to get by, and women never go for broke dudes anyways. Lucifuge Rofocale could shower you with unending riches, and Satanachia could have a hundred women begging just to be your foot-stool, if you just-"

"I will NEVER sell ANYONE my SOUL, Pepito!" Todd interrupted in a suddenly fierce shout, frustrated tears starting to well up in his eyes. "Not for anything! I want to live my life the way I want to, and I want you to let me! I won't be able to keep being considerate of you if you won't do the same for me! And as much as I hate to say it, if you can't learn to let me go - You might just lose me completely!" Todd went suddenly silent after that outburst, afraid of his own nerve. Had he really, finally just said it?

Pepito's eyes went wide, and for the first time ever, Todd recognized a hint of fear in them. Yes he had indeed said it, and Pepito could tell he meant it. "Todd, please, calm down..." He implored, his tone full of hurt. "I don't want you to feel like our friendship is a cage, I didn't realize you felt that way. I really only wanted to protect you, not make you feel stifled. If you really want to go... Then, of course you can..." He said 'of course' rather reluctantly, though.

Todd took a breath of relief and hugged Pepito again. "Thank you, old friend..."

Pepito stroked Todd's sepia-brown hair. "Just, one more thing, and this is very important! If you really want to be out there on your own, fine, and I'm sure you'll be okay..." He'd have his demons tracking him at a distance to make sure. "But there's still the other waste lock candidates to think about. Some of them may be extremely powerful, and besides that, until a waste lock is chosen, if another candidate or anyone else attacks you and you kill them, even in self defense, you'll become the waste lock. And if the waste lock attacks you and you kill them, you'll have to take their place. Either way, it's just a bad idea in general for you to be anywhere near them. But thankfully, there's a way to tell if someone bears the same curse as you..."

Todd pulled away and looked at Pepito quizzically, and the demon went on, "When you see another waste lock candidate, you will feel some kind of unexplainably intense emotion. Just by looking at that person, for no reason at all, you'll suddenly feel completely terrified, or so sad it's like your heart has been crushed. Or so angry, so incredibly pissed off you wanna slap that person even though they've never said a word to you in their life. If you suddenly feel that way looking at a person you've never met and have no reason to feel any which way for, it means they're a waste lock candidate, and if so, for your own good, you need to stay away from them. Okay, Todd?"

"I will, Pepito. Thank you. Trust me, I'll be careful." Todd tried to assure him.

Pepito didn't look certain, and he added, "Wait, just ONE more thing - Take this. Promise me you'll call if you ever need anything." Pepito pulled a cell phone out of mid-air and handed it to his friend. Todd took it, for now. It would ease his old friend's mind, and he owed him at least that, but he would get his own phone too when he could.

"Thank you, amigo." Todd smiled at him sincerely. "But, uh... One last thing from me too - I kinda just remembered I disappeared on Johnny..." He mumbled fearfully, realizing it rather suddenly. "Shit, I hope that didn't freak him out too bad..."

Yeah, disappearing on a guy that got violent when he questioned his sanity was never a good thing to do...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO


	4. A Well-Earned Slumber

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Johnny looked around in bewilderment and annoyance, "Squee? Squee, where did you go?" Finding him nowhere in his immediate vision, he started to panic. Had Squee even been there at all the past few days? "SQUEE?! SQUEEEEEE!"

"Duuuude, will you, like, pipe down?" Some dirty-blond guy sitting at the nearby bus-stop requested, rubbing a finger in his ear. "Man, you're even louder than my weed-Hahaha..."

Johnny snapped his attention towards the toasted idiot, his left eye twitching. "My NAME is NOT 'dude', you stupid, stoned white boy!"

Said stoner lifted his sunglasses and peered at the maniac, "But, you're white too..."

"I'M LATINO YOU IGNORANT FUCK!" Johnny suddenly screeched, pulling a gigantic knife out of the waistband of his pants.

"Whoooa, that knife looks reeeally sharp-AAAAIIIEEE!"

Pepito and Todd apparated back in the same spot Todd had left, just in time to see Johnny stabbing the stoner right through his mouth, the blade coming out the back of his head. "SMOKE THIS, HIPPIE-!"

"JOHNNY!" Todd shrieked in horror, "STOP IT!"

Johnny actually did stop, looking back over his shoulder. "Oh hey. There you are, Squee. Where'd you go?" He replied casually, as if a man wasn't choking in death throes on the blade he was holding.

Pepito sighed and rolled his eyes over at Todd. "Amigo, you're starting to see why I thought this was a bad idea, right...?"

Todd ignored Pepito, stepping towards his older, crazier friend. "Johnny... Please put that knife away." Blinking in slight confusing, Johnny removed the knife from the now-dead stoner's head, wiped the blood on the back of his black pants, and put the knife away as he was asked. Todd took a deep breath, but it didn't relieve his stressed nerves any. "Johnny, why on Earth did you do that..."

"...Hmm. You know, I actually already forgot why." He admitted, somewhat sheepishly.

Todd smacked his forehead, "Johnny, you can't just do things like this..."

"Actually, Todd, he can." Pepito again interrupted. "That's kind of his thing. Kill people in horrendous ways, then 'miraculously' get away with it - Did I mention this is a really bad idea?"

"He's kinda right, on all accounts." Johnny agreed with the antichrist before Todd could protest, although the maniac didn't fully realize what Pepito was actually talking about. "We could seriously sit right here by this body until the cops got here and they wouldn't even blink at me."

Todd let out a frustrated sort of 'squee' under his breath, "No, we can't! We were supposed to be doing the opposite of this, Johnny, remember? We needed to burn or immerse all the soul's bodies in earth and then you could go back to where you wanna be, we can't go adding more bodies or else the job will never get done!"

Pepito sighed irritably himself and rolled his eyes, "Oh for crying out loud, Todd." He snapped his fingers and the stoner's body went up in flame and smoke. "There, problem solved."

"Hey, that IS pretty nifty." Johnny remarked appreciatively, then crossed his arms towards Todd. "And I DID tell you the longer I stayed here, the more I'd start to want to kill people..." He reminded the boy fairly and sternly.

Todd sighed, trying to be reasonable. "I know, Johnny. You did say that. So, lets get you back to your house so you don't have to deal with anyone else, okay?"

"...Yeah, alright..." Johnny finally agreed, to Pepito's visible surprise. Wasn't this guy supposed to be incurably insane and a danger to everyone? Compared to how he'd usually act towards people bossing him around like Todd was, he was practically a purring kitten with the kid.

Todd took a breath of relief, then turned back to his friend the antichrist. "Pepito, I've got things under control. Just let us finish the job and Johnny can go back where he's most comfortable. I promise I'll give you a call as soon as I've got everything settled, but until then, you should probably go back to helping your dad, don't you think?" He gave the demon a reassuring smile. "You know he doesn't like you shirking off your duties for a little ol' human like me."

Pepito blew a hot breath out of his nostrils. "...Just, be REALLY careful, okay?"

The human walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "I promise Pepito, okay?"

Pepito wasn't entirely convinced, but he didn't need to be - Fleurety was on the job now, watching Todd from afar. She would intervene if it was necessary. "Alright, amigo. Call me." He replied with a final nodd, and then with a snap of his fingers, he had vanished into thin air.

Todd took a breath of relief and then turned to Johnny. "Hey, how about I get the bleach and you head on home? I can handle it, don't worry."

Johnny shrugged, not worrying over the boy, to Todd's relief. "Yeah, alright. See ya at home."

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Todd returned later that night with plenty of bleach and as many job applications as he could find. Which took a while and gave him some pretty limited options, as most places insisted on an online application, which Todd obviously couldn't manage at his current residence.

He filled them out while Johnny worked on clearing out more bodies, and when he'd finished, he joined Johnny in the chores. It had been nearly a full week since he'd gotten a wink of sleep, but they were so close to finishing their work, though Todd was more exhausted than he'd ever been, he actually felt energized too. He was filled with a great sense of purpose, and honestly, the lack of sleep was making him feel kind of inebrieted too. He staggered and swayed all over the place but he kept working.

Finally the last of the bodies had been taken away and buried, or thrown at the very bottom level of the house, which was basically just a huge hole in the ground itself, with no supporting structures. So the bodies thrown there would eventually immerse in the Earth, just like the skeletons that had been there long ago but no longer were.

Todd was completely terrified the entire time they were in that final room, staring down that deep, dark hole in the middle of the room as they threw the last of the human remains down into the pit. It felt almost as if he were being choked by very weak hands the entire time until Johnny finally closed the door. Still, the terror stayed with him until they had risen a few levels. Only when they had left the last of the still-dirty levels behind them, and began to smell more bleach than blood again, did Todd finally calm his nerves.

He was still going to clean the blood stained rooms later, but getting rid of the bodies had been the most important task. Fulfilling that purpose settled on Todd heavily, and with every stair-step he felt the last of his energy leaving him. They still had five more sets of stairs to climb when Todd's final reserves finally gave up on him, and he passed out right on the stairs into a sleep so deep it was almost like death.

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Todd had no idea how long he'd been asleep when he finally woke up, but it had been almost thirty-seven hours. He hadn't had a single dream the entire time he was asleep, it was pure darkness, devoid of all thoughts. It was kind of scary when he first woke up. Still incredibly tired, he'd been paranoid and thought that he'd actually been dead for a few moments.

But then his stomach reminded him with a very sharp ache that he was indeed alive, for now, but he'd better eat something quick, or it might not stay that way.

His mouth was dry as a bone too, so the first thing he did was chug down a Mountain Spew soda from a six pack Johnny had left two behind of. He'd also left behind a note pinned to Todd's shirt, which Todd finally noticed after the sugary drink had brought him halfway back to life.

He took the needle that pinned the paper to his shirt out, then began to read it to himself, "Hey Squee, you fell down on the stairs. You still had a pulse so I dragged you back up to the top level. I figured you might get scared if you woke up in the darkness and couldn't find your way back up. You were asleep for a pretty long time though, so I decided to just head on out. I left you a little bit of cash on the kitchen counter, the rest I put in my gas tank so I could get back to my cabin. It's not much, so be careful how you spend it, but it should get you by about a month. I'm sure a smart, hard-working kid like you will find a job by then - Hopefully, anyways. I'll probably check back in with you in a couple months or so. Good luck with everything, Johnny C."

Todd smiled a bit before folding the paper and putting it away in a drawer. Then he downed the second soda and collected his applications to go turn them in.

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The Wack-Mart where Todd was first offered employment a few weeks later was far from his dream job, but beggars couldn't be choosers, and Johnny's cash had almost been spent. It was a bit easier to deal with after he got his first paycheck though. Since he didn't have to worry about rent, he spent most of his first wages stocking the cupboards with food.

A couple of weeks later he finally had enough to get the water and electricity turned back on. He was both surprised and not really to find that nobody asked him about the house. Apparently someone had paid for the property in full at one time, so no one cared, and Todd couldn't bring himself to either. It was just nice to be able to take a hot shower again.

But then again, bathroom he'd been forced to use the last month was not to his standards of cleanliness, even after soaking and scrubbing them in bleach. One of the windows was busted too, and always let in a cold draft at night. Todd had no intention of staying longer than he needed to, but in the meantime, these issues were just going to make things worse. So, with the last of that week's spare wages, he decided to visit a local bookstore he'd passed by on his way to work and buy a book about home improvement.

Todd went in only with the expectation of finding a new book. He didn't expect to also find the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen in his life.

His eyes went with the second he saw her, and his heart skipped a beat before hammering loudly against his chest. He'd always secretly scoffed at the notion of 'love at first sight', even if he also secretly wanted to believe in it, he knew it was impractical. But there was no denying what he was feeling now as he stared at the lovely lady - Her dark magenta hair pulled into a ponytail, her lips painted with a similar dark red hue, and her amber-brown eyes shining like gold. She was his idea of perfection, and he was head over heels in love with her.

His eyes fell on her name-tag, and he read it aloud in a bit of a dreamy sigh, "Devi..."

Hearing her name, the woman looked up from the books she'd been stocking. "...Uh, yeah? Can I help you?"

Shocked at her acknowledgement, Todd's brows shot upwards and he sputtered, "O-Oh! Uh, s-sorry - Can you help me fix my toilet? I MEAN-" Todd literally smacked his own forehead. "Can you help me find a book, about toilets-ABOUT FIXING TOILETS. A book about how to fix toilets, and how to fix other stuff!" Todd finally finished awkwardly, and in an embarrassed rush.

She looked at him strangely, with a raised brow, for a second or two. Then she laughed a little, and motioned for him to follow her. "Yeah, the home improvement section is this way."

She led him to the area he was looking for, but when he got there, he found himself unable to take his eyes off of her. Devi had noticed his staring all along, but hadn't decided not to say anything, until now. "Is there something on my face, or something...?" She asked, trying to show her annoyance while also being polite, for the sake of her job.

"Oh, no, sorry! It's just - Uh, you look a lot like my mom!" He sputtered the half-lie back to her. It of course wasn't the reason he was staring, but it was also true - Minus the pretty dyed hair and extra fifteen or so years of youth, she did resemble his mother quite a bit.

"Oh, I see." She answered with a little, knowing smile. "Well, let me know if I can help you with anything el-"

"Are you guys hiring, by any chance?" Todd blurted out. "I'm, um, new in town, and I got hired at Wack-Mart, but I'm still looking..." Besides just not liking the environment of the workplace, Todd also knew about Johnny's 'W'-word idiosyncrasy, and dreaded having to tell him if he asked. He wasn't sure if saying 'Wack' alone was as dangerous as adding the 'y', but he didn't feel like finding out.

Devi shrugged and nodded in passive understanding. "Yeah, I'm sure you are. Wack-Mart is a crap place to work, they treat their employees like serfs. And the economy is so tough almost everyone has two jobs. But yanno, we actually are looking to replace a girl that just left. You'll need to fill an application online though."

Todd almost began to look disappointed, until Devi added charitably, "If you don't have internet, there's a library about five blocks from here where you can get it."

He burst into a smile again, "Thanks so much! I'll do that right now!"

She proceeded to give him a funny look. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

"...Oh!" Todd smacked his forehead again. "Of course, the book!" Blushing, he reached over and picked out one that looked informative but simple - Home Improvement for Dummies. "Thanks so much for all your help, Devi!"

"Hey, thank you for pronouncing my name right. You wouldn't believe how often people foul it up." She replied nonchalantly, then added, "Here, I'll go ahead and ring you up, too."

He followed after her gladly and gratefully to the register and paid for his book. Before he finally left, Devi told him, "Hey, good luck, kid."

"Th-Thanks! You too!" Todd replied nervously, and finally forced himself to look away from her as he left, lest he walk into a door.

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End file.
